Customer Reviews

Escaflowne - The Series (Limited Edition Boxed Set)

5 star:		(73)
4 star:		(7)
3 star:		(6)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

Do I really need to ring Escaflowne's praises for you? Most everyone who is into anime has already seen this series but for those of you who are not but may have seen and like movies like Princess Mononoke this is the series to pick up. It is by far the most accessible of any anime series I have seen and is perfect for a budding anime guru. In fact this is the very series I will show to my friends who have yet to see any anime they think is worth watching.

Visually, Escaflowne is pretty remarkable for a TV series that shows obvious signs of extremely high production values. The story may not be the most intricate in the world of anime but it more than suffices. What is most impressive about Escaflowne is the characters. Van and Hitomi are some of my favorite characters ever and are both completely believable in their respective places; Hitomi as the fish out of water teenager and Van as the young kind thirsting for revenge. I also enjoyed many of the supporting characters such as Dilandu and Folken; even the bad guys were given a proper history and motivations rather than simple blind obedience to whatever evil scheme might be in style. In fact evil itself is somewhat grayed as no character is truly evil, only misguided doing what they believe is right and just.

I would recommend Escaflowne to anyone and everyone; it is a series that can have appeal to the very young and old alike. Truly masterful work.

Note that anyone who has seen this series on Fox Kids has been watching a kiddied down version of a show that wasn't really meant for children to begin with. Don't let that Escaflowne-lite ruin your opinion of the show.

I am doing a premature review of this product seeing that I have only watched episodes contained on discs 1-4 of this 8 disc set.

Escaflowne is a well-thought out story with excellent animation and character development. I love the music by fabu-musician Yoko Kanno too. Her use of strings really sets the mood for the dramatic moments.

Escaflowne begins (to whet your appeitite for more) one fateful day when high school sprinter Hitomi Kanzaki experiences a disturbing vision of another world and discovers from her best friend that Amano (the track team star she has a crush on) is about to go abroad. On an impulse, she asks him the next day for her first kiss -- if, she can sprint 100 meters in thirteen seconds. But then, a young warrior prince and a dragon appears before Hitomi during the run ... that's when Hitomi's world gets turned upside down as she is transported to the warrior prince's homeworld of Gaia!

This Limited Edition Boxed Set comes with a beautiful Black Escaflowne figurine and tons of special features.

Dialogue is offered in both English and original Japanese with English Subtitles.

This is an anime series not to be missed by an Otaku of any level of experience.

An astounding series brought to us by some of the top talents in anime, Escaflowne is in fact a story about the discovery of the lost city, Atlantis', secret and about the consequences of Isaac Newton's reactions to this discovery. On the somewhat atypical surface, however, Escaflowne is about a young Japanese girl's romantic involvements with the other main characters.A medieval setting allows for an all new and original interpretation on traditional mecha, as the behemoth battle armors, or "Guymelefs," are composed primarily of gears and use swords, as opposed the Gundam type servos and beams. Nevertheless, the animators found ample opportunity to include some flashy digital effects, stealth cloaking will impress you.Although I found Hitomi Kanzaki, our main character, difficult to relate to, Van Fanel and Allen Schezar, a descendant of Atlantis and a royal knight respectively, steal the show. Thier efforts against a powerful military regime known as Zaibach Empire, who seek not only control over the planet, but over the laws of casaulity (fate) itself, are truly a sight to behold. A seemless blend of science fiction and medieval fantasy produce some of the most memorable anime characters and scenes you'll ever set eyes on. A superb musical score and acceptable dubbing round out this awesome package.Unfairly labeled a "girl's cartoon" in some sects, Escaflowne is some of Japan's very best anime and is truly deserving of this fantastic box set edition (thanks bandai). Episodic anime just doesn't get any better than this!

The Limited Edition is now Out-of-Print. It consists of the 8 volumes of the TV series in their own keepcases and original artwork covers, all within a flip-top collector's box. The Limited Edition comes with a black Escaflowne action figure in its own box.

The Perfect Collection is a newer edition released in late 2004 for a limited run. It contains both the TV series and the movie. It is a digipak consisting of the same 8 discs from the TV series plus the movie disc. There are no artwork covers from the individual DVDs. It's basically the 9 discs in plastic trays arranged in a book-like package with a slipcover to hold them together.

The Vision of Escaflowne. Yes, that is the name of the best anime series ever created. I've never been a big fan of shoujo anime, but I love this one. It has stuff for the girls (romance, cute-ness, big girly anime eyes) and stuff for the guys (action, horror, big giant robots). This show is for everyone, anyone, guys, girls, kids, adults.

(PLOT - 10/10) The plot is great. It's romantic and it's about war. War on another planet, where Earth looks like a moon. War over a giant suit of armor called Escaflowne. Now THAT'S what I call a plot. Hehe.

(MUSIC 7/10) Don't get me wrong; the music is great. The vocals by Maaya Sakamoto are simply GORGEOUS, and the backround music is beautiful and fits every part perfectly. The reason I gave it a 7 is because some of the music gets on my nerves (the chanting and stuff)

(ANIMATION 9/10) The animation is great for a TV series. I noticed a couple glitches, but most of the animation is clear and cool! ^___^

(DUB 8/10) The dub is ok. It's one of the better dubs I've seen out there, other than Bebop. There are a few mistakes, but nothing major. The subtitles are great. I didn't notice any spelling errors at all.

(OVERALL 9/10) This is one of the best. I reccommend it to anyone. I'd rate it 12 and up because of violence, a confusing plot, and some butt-shots of a very ugly blue dude.

Now, put your hand on the mouse. Good. Now move the mouse down to the 'buy' button. Good. Now click. GOOD.

Where can I begin? Escaflowne is one of the Holy Grails of anime, almost universally beloved and constantly appearing on anime fans' top ten lists. Anyone who's seen the series knows why. This show combines gorgeous animation with a genre-bending narrative and wonderful characters to produce a series that is endlessly entertaining and utterly enthralling.

The series centers around Hitomi Kanzaki, a normal high school girl who does a bit of fortune telling on the side. One day after school, she and her friends are attacked by a dragon which appears from nowhere, and subsequently saved by a mysterious boy in armor. Then Hitomi and the young man (who we learn is called Van) are swept back to his homeland of Gaea, where Hitomi gets caught up in an epic struggle to save the countries of Gaea from the evil Zaibach Empire. Oh, and did I mention that there's also this mystical mech called Escaflowne that's involved in the whole thing, too?

Escaflowne is famous for its genre-bending narrative. It is at once a fantasy adventure, a love story, a coming-of-age tale, and a mech/war series. No one facet of the story dominates the series, meaning that there is plenty in the show that will appeal to all people of all different tastes. Even more astounding is the show's breathtaking pacing. Gone is the filler that pads out most anime series. EVERY episode advances the plot and reveals new depth to the characters, and is so well written and engrossing that if you aren't careful you might just watch the entire series at once.

And given the characters that drive this tale, that wouldn't be such a bad thing. Hitomi is the perfect heroine, running the gamut from scared high schooler to mature, empowered adult. She balances her fears with her strength to create a wholly convincing and utterly likable character. Van is equally well handled, who while initially appearing brazen and rude is revealed to be a troubled prince trying to do what's right. And surrounded these two is one of the most enjoyable and well-characterized cast of characters I've ever seen in any media. Love interest and gallant knight Allen Schezar proves a great counterpoint to Van's more aggressive personality, and I challenge anyone not to fall in love with catgirl sidekick Merle (source of most of the show's humor). The antagonists are also extremely well done, with Folken and Dilandau being standouts. Folken's cool confidence gives way to a fully realized man who only wants what he considers best, and madman Dilandau is so deliciously evil that he steals the majority of the scenes he's in.

And then there's the animation! I have rarely run across a show with such high production values. The show sports scene after scene of gorgeous animation, be it characters simply walking down the street or mechs beating the crap out of each other. The show also sports some jaw-dropping locales and one of the most unique design styles in all of anime. The look of Gaea is brilliant, owing in no small part to the creative mech and costume designs as well as the show's vibrant color pallet.

Another aspect that can not be underestimated is the show's score. Musical genius Yoko Kanno has made quite the name for herself in Japan, who's name alone can generate interest in a show. How many composers can claim that? And with Escaflowne she delivers in spades, creating a rich orchestral score on par or above the standards for most feature films. Her music is also expertly used to enhance the drama, with many of the series' most memorable moments being defined by her score.

A final note: Do yourself a favor and watch the show subtitled. Normally I don't mind dubs (in fact, I usually prefer them), but the dub for this show sucks all life and vitality out of the story and characters. Subtitled, however, it is one of the very best anime shows money can buy.

Want an anime title that's part of almost all the types anime there are? Escaflowne is for you! In Escaflowne you get your romance, sci-fi, mecha, fantasy, and probably more but I can't think of them right now. The story is gripping (I've spent hours upon hours in front of the TV watching this show; my eyes got all dried out and scratchy from staring at the TV for such an extended period of time) and the characters are pretty believable, at least the ones that could be considered "normal." As with most anime you also have your crazy supporting characters. I have a somewhat odd fascination with Dilandau, but that isn't why you're reading this. Get to the point, ktazle!

Hitomi is an average girl. She goes to school, is on the track team, and does fortune telling and tarot readings in her spare time. One evening, while saying a somewhat akward goodbye to a significant other, a young man magically appears right before her very eyes. Literally. Soon after the young man appears, a dragon appears, too. After the anime custom there is a fight sequence that ends with Hitomi saving the young man's life. At first he doesn't seem all that grateful. Hitomi vents her frustration about her ingratitude and it results in her being magically transported along with the young man to another world. An epic story ensues with all the sorts of mayhem you could expect and maybe then some. Also, unlike some other anime titles, this show is somewhat intelligent. A nice quality for anime, I must say!

Escaflowne in under a thousand words, tough...

Well I'll start with some back ground. Escaflowne is the creation of Shoji Kawamori, best known for Macross. His influence really shows through, Escaflowne shares many common themes, love triangles, feasibly sized giant robots and most importantly that love is the most powerful force there is. Kawamori opted not to direct as he felt he was too involved in the creation to do a good job so Kazuki Akane was brought in.

Escflowne is a fantasy epic more in the tradition C.S. Lewis's "The Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe" than "Lord of the rings". It's a romance, it's an adventure story, it's a rites of passage story, it's got giant robots it's got it all and it all sits together perfectly.

Perhaps what really makes Escaflowne is the characters. Every last character from the main characters to the minor supporting players seem believable as people. They're not irritatingly wound up in their own angst, they're not too perfect at conveying they're feelings. I was really able to identify with every character in some respect.

In terms of design Escflowne is quite unusual. The style is taken from girls comics. It's beautifully carried off and gives the entire series a distinctive and unique look. The character designs themselves are brilliant, well thought out and really well suited to the characters and their background. The mecha designs are excellent, everything has a fantasy look about.

I can't go with out mentioning the music, it's Yoko Kano so needless to say it's good. The covers grandiose symphonic pieces that put John Williams to shame to Poppy songs that some how avoid being cheesy. I really can't do it justice, suffice to say the music is good.

After 26 episodes everything is neatly wrapped up. You are not left with unanswered questions, the story isn't left unfinished and at the same time you don't feel that your intelligence has been insulted. It ends with perfect executing of ending that has made grown men cry.

Well now to the bad. The series is too short. It was originally planned to run for 39 episodes and the compression of the story is sometimes clear. The middle of the story runs straight into the end plot without enough punctuation. Another effect of this is that there aren't enough episodes or pairs of episodes which have a self contained sub story. The few there are are very good but there just isn't enough, especially later in the series. Also I found the English language sound track totally unwatchable. My Japanese isn't great but I do know that the subtitles aren't 100% accurate.

Escaflowne is a fantasy epic carried off with skill and integrity. You could argue that it's the greatest work of anime in the last decade. It's not perfect but it's near enough. If your an anime fan and you didn't buy the discs seperately then this is a must. If your new to anime then I can think of no better place to start.

This anime has a sort of cult following, so I decided to borrow my friend's set seen above and try it out. I got into it right away during the first couple of disks, but after that, it was abit of a disappoint for me. The reason for this is because of the writer's use of the literary mechanic of "Deus Ex Machina," or "God as a machine." Normally this literary device is used sparingly, it is comparable to God intervening to get a character or situation to change course. I realize this anime was about fate and all that jazz, but saving the main character's lives by whisking them away on a beam of light whenever they are in trouble gets annoying after the 10th time. A prime example of this device being exploited was when the Escaflowne is damaged, so they press/pull a button/lever on the Escaflowne and low and behold(!) an interdimensional fixing service appears out of thin air to repair it! When stuff like this happens repeatedly throughout episode after episode, I tells me 1 of 2 things, either the writers didn't know how to get the characters out of the situation they got themselves into (which makes you not really care about the characters anymore) or the writers really had such low expectations from their target audience's intelligence levels!

In closing, before you flame me, remember that I am an Anime fan myself. I have seen great anime, like Grave of the Fireflies and I have seen piss poor ones which I won't mention. Escaflowne as a series is neither of those. It is a decent series, don't be a lemming and love it because it has such a hard core fan base, judge it on it's merits.

I've heard a lot about this show for the past couple years, so I decided to borrow my friends collection, and am I ever glad I did! This is a series you can't help but fall in love with. Great action, adventure, love, mystery, loyalty, betrayal, war...this has it all jam-packed into one awesome fantasy ride that keeps your interest all the way!! A colorful and intruiging array of characters brings even more life to the story as it unfolds. It all begins when Hitomi Kanzaki, an average high school girl who is on the track team and does Tarot card readings for her friends, is sucked into another world with a boy named Van-the king of a city called Fanelia. But then Fanelia is suddenly attacked by the Zaibachs-an empire who wants to control their world, and destiny itself!! Van takes up arms against the Zaibachs, with some help from Hitomi and new friends he meets. However, Hitomi's mysterious power that allows her to see into the future may be helpful to her friends, but when the Zaibach's learn of her abilities, they want her for themselves!! And could Van's Guymelef Escaflowne somehow be a threat to their empire? This fantasy/adventure is different from any other that you will ever see!! An excellent music score, along with quality animation and a memorable plot of human strength and determination makes this a wonderful title to get!!